Now I see
by Lady Snowblossom
Summary: Fourth and last in the Ronin Lover's Arc. Yuli is in an accident, and Kento is finally ready to confess his love, is he too late?


Title: Now I see  
  
Author: Lady Snowblossom  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Pairings: Rowan + Sage, Ryo + Cy, Kento + Yuli  
  
Notes: Looking for lemon, sorry, ain't gonna find it. I've actually managed to write a story line that didn't include sex, (scratches head) now how did that happen? This is the fourth and last part of 'Ronin Lover's Arc'.  
  
Disclaimer: See part one, would ya. I really don't want to have to keep retyping those things.  
  
"See ya tomorrow, Jiro!" Yuli waved at his friend as he headed for the exit of the theater. "Sure thing, Yuli!" The young man called back, "that is if the weather permits." Yuli laughed and opened the door. Outside snow was falling, the temperature was dropping, all the signs said it was going to be a bad night. Shoving his hands into the deep pockets of his coat, the black haired young man headed up the alley beside the theater.  
  
He sighed as he paused at the curb, he didn't think he'd try to make it to Mia's. Maybe he should call Cy and Ryo and ask if he could spend the night. With a dull ache in his heart he thought of Kento. Hardrock's place was within walking distance, but he knew that Ken would just come up with an excuse to keep him from coming over, so he'd just grab a bite to eat, and call Cy. Stepping off the curb, Yuli didn't see the car that came around the corner until it was almost on top of him.  
  
It was Jiro's scream of 'Yuli, watch out!' that alerted him. Yuli's head whipped to the right facing the car running without headlights and reacted; years spent with five warriors with hair-trigger reflexes sent him leaping for the curb.  
  
Jiro had his hand to his mouth, as he watched helplessly. At first it looked to him that Yuli had made it, but then the car's left fender clipped Yuli knocking him off balance. There was a sickening thud as Yuli's head impacted with the curb. The car squealed on two wheels as it clawed its way around the corner.  
  
Jiro sprinted across the street and fell to his knees beside his friend. A pool of blood was forming under the side of Yuli's head. Yuli's eyes were shut and his breathing shallow. He pulled off his coat and covered Yuli with it. Desperately he looked around for help and breathed a sigh of relief as he spotted a man who worked for the theater.  
  
"Akihito! Call an ambulance! Yuli was hit by a car!" The man didn't waste any breath, asking questions, he just pivoted and ran back the way he'd come. Jiro ignored the tears freezing on his face, as he whispered, "Come on Yuli! Stay with us!"  
  
Kento snarled as the shrill ringing of his phone greeted him coming through the front door. He was tired, the restaurant had been short handed because of the weather and he had had to work nearly all day to take up some of the slack. As he threw his coat across the shelf the phone was on, he growled a profane description of what he wanted to do to the moron on the other end of the line.  
  
A big beefy hand snatched up the receiver and barked, "Who is this!" "KENTO!" Cy's shrill voice broke over Kento's like a wave, "SHUT THE FUCK UP! Get your ass down to the Toyama Hospital! Yuli is being operated on right-NOW!" There was sharp click as the receiver on the other end was slammed down.  
  
Hardrock stared with horror at the dead thing in his hand, reaching to hang up the receiver, he noticed idly that his hand was shaking. In a daze, he blindly reached for his coat, his mind shrieking Yuli! Twenty minutes later, Kento was pulling up in front of the hospital.  
  
Things had an unreal feel as Kento heard his voice calmly ask the receptionist how to find the operating theatre. The woman sent him up to the fifth floor. The calm surreal feeling stayed with him, as he took the elevator. It wasn't until the doors opened and he exited to find himself standing just outside the waiting room, that things began to feel like reality.  
  
Cy and Ryo were sitting holding hands with their knees touching, an identical looks of pain on their pale faces. Beyond them was a young man, who sat staring off into space, an unread magazine open on his lap.  
  
Kento eased into a seat across from his friends. "Any word?" he whispered. Cy tearfully shook his head. "They've been in there for over two hours!" The Brit freed his hand from Ryo's grip to wave both his pale hands in the air. Ryo reached out and reclaimed one of the agitated human fans.  
  
Hardrock looked around. Rowan and Sage were nowhere in sight and neither was Mia. "What happened? Where's Ro and Sage? Does Mia know? He demanded.  
  
Ryo ran a hand through his bangs and addressed the larger Ronin. "Jiro," he nodded towards the young man, who was now playing with the magazine, "says that a car with no headlights came around the corner at the theatre and clipped Yuli. He called our house and got Cy. Cy called me at work and I rushed over here. I called Sage and Rowan, they're on their way to get Mia." Ryo paused as a doctor came striding towards their small group.  
  
Wildfire with Torrent at his side stood up to meet the physician. Kento and Jiro stood as well. "Doctor, is there any word about our friend, Yuli?" Ryo asked quietly.  
  
The doctor surveyed the anxious faces in front of him and cleared his throat, there was no way to sugar coat the news he had. The man flipped open the chart and peered at the contents. "Yes, your friend suffered a blow to the right side of his head and suffered from tremendous blood loss. We managed to stop the bleeding. The main danger at the moment is the swelling of his brain. If we can not reduce that." Kento interrupted the doctor. "If you don't, then what?" The man was unaffected by the interruption. "He will die. However, the patient is in excellent condition and that may help."  
  
Kento's breath froze in his lungs making it terribly hard to breathe. Thoughts of Yuli's eyes at the wedding flooded his mind, and he fought them down. He snapped back to reality as the words the doctor was saying sank in.  
  
".... Well, since Yuli's parents are not available, I will make arrangements for you and the others to visit him in the ICU. But it will be a couple of days at least, before you will be able to see him. I suggest you all go home now." The physician said briskly, then he nodded and moved off. Cy sobbed on Ryo's shoulder, and Jiro sank slowly into a chair. Kento mumbled, "I have to see him." Then a little louder, he said, "I have to see him."  
  
"Nani?" Ryo said, as he sought to comfort his husband. Kento whirled his eyes wide and blazing, "Ryo, I've got to see him! I...I have to tell him something." Ryo grabbed the heavier Ronin by the forearm, "Kento, I don't know what you have to do, but you can't yet! Didn't you hear the doctor, he's unconscious." Kento yanked roughly away from the restraining hand, his mouth opening.  
  
"Ryo! Cy! Kento!" Mia with Sage and Rowan in tow burst into the group. "What happened! Is Yuli all right? As Ryo turned to deal with the questions his old friends hurled at him. Kento walked with heavy steps to look out the window at the lights twinkling down below. He could see the reflection of Mia holding Ryo and crying. Rowan was hugging himself, while Sage stood as rigid as his sword. Only someone well versed in Sage's body language would have read his fear and sorrow in that uncompromising stance. Yuli's friend, Jiro, got up and excused himself. He couldn't stand it anymore and only wanted to go home.  
  
Cy's reflection joined his as a hand gripped his shoulder and squeezed. Kento covered the hand and squeezed it back, but he didn't turn around. His eyes widen in shock as Cy murmured, "So, you're finally ready to admit it."  
  
Kento's shoulders slumped in defeat and he leaned his head forward until his forehead pressed against the glass. "Yeah," he said softly watching his breath fog a small spot of the pane in front of him, "Now that it's too late."  
  
"You don't know that for sure." Cy tried to interject some hope into his friend. "You have to have hope, Ken." "But, if I hadn't been so stubborn and so sure that I couldn't love him, because he's younger that we are." Kento damned himself. "Stop that, Ken! That's the past! We have to deal with the NOW!" Cy hissed. He put a hand on Kento's arm, his expression compassionate. "Come home with us, Kento. I don't think you need to be alone now, and I'm sure the others will be staying as well."  
  
Kento sighed, "All right, Cy." He turned and allowed the smaller man to lead him in the comforting group embrace of his friends.  
  
It was two o'clock in the morning and a weary young man stared down at the paper lying on the desk in front of him. Kento chewed on the end of his pen and added the closing line to the poem he had just written. Like the others, Hardrock had his safety valve. For Ryo it was diving into Mt. Fuji and making love to Cy. Torrent found relief in cooking, cleaning and caring for his beloved husband. Sage had his forest, and Rowan - his books. For Kento it was writing, not that he ever showed it to anyone. He reread the poem for the final time.  
  
NOW I SEE  
  
Now I see, when the hourglass is almost empty, what your heart means to mine.  
  
Too long, have I denied the power of your spirit, seeking refuge in foolish lies I told my heart.  
  
If I could, I would return to the hour of your first offering, and accept the gift you yearned to give.  
  
But, the tide of destiny waits not for fools, who can not see beyond the dictates of blind conscience.  
  
In your eyes, I saw the simple asking for faith, for belief in a future I dare not touch.  
  
Forgive me, I let my fear overrule my heart, hurting the one who wished only for my love.  
  
Turn the glass, from this hour let me show you, what my soul can no longer deny.  
  
You, are and always were, the Keeper of my heart.  
  
Yawning, Kento shoved his chair back and switched off the light. The demands and shock of the day had caught up with him. Dragging his feet as though he was mired in ankle deep mud, Kento fell like a toppling oak tree into the welcoming embrace of the bed. He didn't wake when the door opened and a auburn haired guardian angel entered.  
  
Cy smiled at the snores rumbling up deep from Kento's chest. Quietly, he crossed the floor to the bed, and tucked the blankets about the sleeping giant. His lips relaxed, as he leaned down and brushed them across Kento's temple. "Good night, Ken. Sweet dreams." He breathed and left his friend to his dreams.  
  
When Kento woke the next morning, he frowned at the unfamiliar surroundings, before remembering that he was at Ryo and Cy's home. He sat up and throwing the blankets back, hopped out of bed. Leaving his room, he was headed for the bathroom, when he overheard voices. Curious, he followed the sound. At the end of the hallway, he peered over the banister and looked down into the living room. Sage, Rowan and Mia were sitting together talking. Kento could hear the sound of laughter from somewhere out of sight and guessed that Cy and Ryo were in the kitchen.  
  
"Sage, you could use Korin to heal Yuli, couldn't you?" Mia asked.  
  
"Yes," Sage answered, "But I have to touch him and unless we can get in to see him. I'm not going to be able to do anything, and the doctor isn't going to let us in until they're are good and ready."  
  
"Not necessarily, I figga I can get us in." drawled Rowan with a lazy smile.  
  
Kento's mouth dropped open at Rowan's softly drawled comment. What did that devious archer mean by that? 


End file.
